Vitamin extraction from sunflower seed



Patented Aug. 31, 1948 2,448,185 EXTBAC'l'sIggDFBOM SUNFLOWER Esra Levin, Champaign, lli.

wing Original application October 27, 1944. Serial No. 560.719.- Divided and this application May 17. 1945, Serial No. 504,862

2 Claims. (01. 167-81) tors therein in a stable condition fordifferent uses.

It is the obect of the present invention to treat sunflower seeds or analogous material iroin the sunflower family in the class of dicotyledonous herbs in a gentle manner, that is, at comparatively low temperatures; in order to preserve all the valuable constituents therein without any deterioration of such constituents in the course of processing, and to enhance the stability of the resulting products prior to their ultimate use.

The invention proceeds upon the principle that natural plant products, such as sunflower seeds, may be utilized with maximum eiflciency to ob,- tain the constituents thereof in a form to render them lit for human consumption ii. particular care is taken in the course of the processing of such seeds to preserve the vitamin, mineral, protein, antioxidant and other biochemical values therein as they occur in the natural state prior to processing. According to the invention, this objective is attained by the solvent extraction of the natural oils from-the sunflower seed at-com paratively low temperatures so that the destructive efl'ects which are normally encountered in processing steps at high temperatures do not take place. It is a further object of the invention to provide a vitamin concentrate from defatted sun-- 2 oil removal and treatment. Thus, the deiatted sunflowerseed meal, theoil extracted therefrom,

as well as the pleasingflavor are preserved intact it'theseparation .oi' the constituents of the sunflower is executed at comparatively low temperatures, that is, at temperatures not exceeding 75, C. This principle of the use of low temperatures in the derivation of the deiatted meal of the sunflower seed to preserve the protein values therein is contrary to the practice in the handling of the proteins from soybeans and other leguminous seeds, in which case high temperatures improve and promote the protein values. In the case .0! the sunflower seeds high temperatures act to degrade or denature the protein content; such loss in protein value is avoided by the use of the comparatively low temperatures at which the solvent extraction and sepaaration' of the oil and solids, as well as the other treating steps, are executed.

The first step in the, treatment of the sunflower seeds to obtain any of the desired products therefrom, involves, the removal of the hulls from the de-hulled and rolled sunflower seeds is then exas a food for human consumption. These seeds contain high percentages of oil and protein. The natural seeds have been assayed to contain approximately of oil and the assays have shown that the defatted meal derived from these kernels contains about 53% of protein. The protein'constituent is heat sensitive and aside i'ioiiiv this factor, the delicate flavor in the sunflower seed, which is of good taste, is likewise subject to deterioration at high temperatures which are ordinarily employed in conventional methods or tracted with a suitable organic solvent such as ethylene dichloride, hexane, petroleum ether, etc., at low temperature which may be room temperature or slightly higher, and the last traces of solvent are removed from the meal by the use of steam and a high vacuum at a temperature not exceeding C.

The stable sunflower seed meal can stand for long periods of time without deterioration. It may also be used as a starting product for other valuable'materials and concentrates. ple, an albumin-like protein material, having valuable foaming and coagulating characteristics, may be preparedfrom the water soluble fraction or the dei'atted sunflower meal in the following manner. which process is inoperative unless the meal is dei'atted.

For examwith an additional portion of water from 80 minutes to 2 hours. and after centrifuging this liquid may be combined with the first liquid extract to further increase the yield of the water soluble protein. The water soluble proteins may be derived in a solid form from the aqueous extract by evaporating the latter to dryness at a temperature no greater than 75 C. by the use of a vacuum drier or by resorting to spray drying or evaporating in shallow pans. The solid albumin-like protein obtained by this process amounts to 1% to 2% of the defatted sunflower meal.

The albumin-like protein is an eifective ooagulating agent which is useful in physical and which may be recovered in solid form by evaporating the solution.

The defatted sunflower meal is initially characterized by the following analysis:.

Dry Ether Crude Ash Crude N-iree Gross matter extract protein pct fiber extract energy pct. pct. pct. pct. pct. cala/gm.

05.41 4. 4s sass 6.46 4.05 21. to 4.51

The defatted sunflower seed provides an excellent source for a vitamin concentrate which may be prepared in the following manner:

A portion of the meal is mixed with 5 to times its weight of water which is heated to the boiling point. All of the protein material in the meal coagulates and flocculates at the top of the liquid carrying any starches and sugars with it.

is approximately 10% of the weight of the defatted sunflower meal.

Aside from the initial boiling step to effect the separation of the protein from the mixture, the other steps of the process are conducted at low temperatures and preferably in the absence of any strong light in order to preserve the vitamin content of the concentrate.

While the invention has been described with reference to particular methods of treatment and products resulting therefrom, it is, of course, not to be limited thereto, except insofar as is necessitated by the prior art and the scope of the appended claims.

' I claim as my invention:

1. A process which comprises extracting oil substantially completely from comminuted sunflower seed with an organic fat solvent substan- The coagulated material is then removed from the liquid either by filtering or centrifuging. The

liquid remaining is then concentrated under vacuum at a low temperature. terial is a. dark viscous product with a slight The final ma caramel taste consisting of a very concentrated with the minerals contained in the sunflower I seed. The concentrate obtained by this process tially immiscible with water, at a temperature below about degrees centigrade, eliminating the last traces of solvent from the defatted seed by means of high vacuum at low temperature. then extracting the defatted seed with water at a temperature below 75 degrees centigrade, then heating the solution thus obtained at a temperature and for a time to precipitate the protein. separatingthe aqueous solution from the solid material thus formed, and evaporating water therefrom to produce a concentrate comprising vitamins and other water soluble components of sunflower seed.

2. The process of claim 1 wherein the solvent is ethylene dichloride.

EZRA LEvm.

REFERENCES crran The following references are of record in the flle of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,913,515 Schmitt June 13, 1933 2,229,684 Supplee et al'. Jan. 28, 1941 2,314,282 Levin Mar. 16, 1943 2,369,775 Colman Feb. 20, 1945 OTHER REFERENCES 

